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[ɑŋwɑtkiː]
barren woman (woman unable to bear children); woman permitted to play a male role in a 'singsing' ritual masked dance Baining, Qaqet – 6,400 speakers – Papua New Guinea (East New Britain) This word consists of angwat (man) with -ki (feminine suffix). Normally, it would be angwat-ka with the masculine suffix. More about Baining. Source: Gail Pool, “Lost Among the Baining” (U of Missouri Press, 2015), p. 137 Credit: Jonathan Pool [gaɾeiʔme]
the cracking noise made when crushing a louse under one’s fingernail Kunwok – approx 2,000 speakers – Australia (West Arnhem, Northern Territory) When finding a mother louse ngalbadjan, it is satisfying to crack it between one's thumbnails or by using mabarla, a special flat stick used to part hair and crush lice. The verb can also incorporate the noun bid (hand), to form the word kabiddeyhme, 'pull the trigger of a gun.' Kunwok is one of the small number of Australian languages still being acquired by children, and is used as the daily language of communication in the community of Gunbalanya (Oenpelli), Northern Territory. More about Kunwok. Source: Alexandra Marley (fieldwork) [mɐmpeˈmuɾuwuɭmuɾuwuɭ]
she's making (the girl's) hair beautiful Murrinhpatha – approx 2,500 speakers – Australia (Daly River region, Northern Territory) This word can be broken down into mam-, meaning third person singular, non-future, action performed with hands; pe-, an incorporated noun meaning head or hair, and murruwurl, the verb stem meaning to make nice or beautiful. The stem is reduplicated to show that the action is repeated, as in fussing with the hair. Murrinhpatha is one of the small number of Australian languages still being acquired by children, and is used as the daily language of communication in the community of Wadeye (Port Keats), Northern Territory. Source: Rachel Nordlinger (fieldwork) [dalappoɾoɖ]
place on a tree where two branches rub together; the sound of two branches rubbing together Dalabon – 5 speakers – Australia (Arnhem Land) You can curse someone by putting a piece of their dirty/sweaty clothing in spot where the two branches meet. The accursed will get sick and can only recover if the item is removed from the dalabborrord. Source: Evans, Merlan & Tukumba (eds, 2004) Dalabon Dictionary Credit: Alexandra Marley [ʔʌnʌltiɬ]
(s)he is eating berries off the bush Carrier/Dakelh – 600 speakers – central British Columbia, Canada Berries, especially blueberries, form a significant part of the traditional diet, and collecting and drying berries is a major summer activity. Carrier people even set forest fires in order to create berry habitat. Of course it is hard to avoid eating while you work, or picking a few berries for a snack while travelling. However, "eating berries off the bush" is not the true meaning of this verb. You can use it to describe someone eating berries as he or she picks them, but you can also use it to describe someone eating berries one by one from a bowl. On the other hand, someone eating berries by the spoonful cannot be described using this word. What this verb actually describes is eating individual members of a "mess" of berries. Most of the time we do not concern ourselves with individual berries, just as we do not concern ourselves with individual grains of sand, salt, sugar, or rice. There are so many that we think of the collection as an uncountable mass, not as a set of individuals. If we eat members of such a "mess" one by one, so that we individuate them, we are doing what is described by this verb. In this word, the n is a "classifier" for round things. We can use the same basic verb, without the n, to describe a bear eating ants, where, unfortunately from the bear's point of view, it is possible only to get hold of one or a few ants at a time. More about Carrier. Source: personal field notes Credit: Bill Poser [gaɾijoljolmɛn]
Let's story Kunwok – 2,000 speakers – Australia (Arnhem Land) The word karriyolyolmen can be analysed karri- (we) yolyolme (tell story) -n (imperative). The root yolyolme, "tell a story", or "relate news", is distinct from wokdi, "speak" or "talk". Nga-yolyolme bu namarrkon djang I- "story" about lightning dreaming I tell a story about lighting dreaming Kunwok is a complex of six language varieties spoken in West Arnhem in the 'Top End' of Australia. For more information about Kunwok visit kunwok.org. Credit: Steven Bird, Bulanj Dean Yibarbuk [k'onihʔazi]
A newly wed beaver couple, that is, a male beaver and a female beaver who have recently formed a union and built a lodge together. Carrier/Dakelh – 600 speakers – central British Columbia, Canada The Carrier region is full of streams and woods suitable for beaver, and beaver are plentiful. European contact was motivated largely by the desire for the pelts of beaver and other fur-bearing animals. Traditionally, Carrier people hunted beaver primarily for the meat, especially the tail, which is rich and fatty, which may be off-putting to non-locals but is appealing to people accustomed to a cold, northern climate. Carrier people know a great deal about beavers and have an elaborate terminology for them. More about Carrier. Source: field notes from work with the late Harry Pierre Credit: Bill Poser [tikotaɹa]
(of a man) Carry a lover to several locations inside a house (to demonstrate physical strength) before having sex. Takuu – 1,800 speakers – Taku Atoll near Bougainville, Papua New Guinea Piers Kelly came across this word while editing the Takuu dictionary. Richard Moyle explains that its cognates in several parts of Polynesia refer to the kingfisher bird. The kingfisher is not known on Taku Atoll, although it may have been present in the past. Even that meaning has a hidden story because the word is a compound noun: tiko 'shit', tara 'curved end of a house'. Moyle writes: "How the term became transferred to a form of athletic foreplay remains unclear, and my dictionary collaborators were less than forthcoming." Source: Richard M. Moyle (2011). Takuu Grammar and Dictionary. Canberra: Pacific Linguistics Credit: Piers Kelly, Richard M. Moyle [pʰanukʰu]
1. For a girl to push her partner at arm's length in dancing; 2. Be hesitant to do something mainly due to rules of propriety. Visayan – 16 million speakers – central and southern Philippines The prestige dialect 'Cebuano-Visayan' is spoken only on the island of Cebu. However the label 'Cebuano' is often used to refer to the totality of Visayan dialects. Source: Wolff, John U (1972). A Dictionary of Cebuano Visayan. Ithaca, New York: Cornell University. Credit: Piers Kelly [kwadi]
The laziness one feels after warming oneself in the sun on cold days. Hunsrik – 3,000,000 speakers – Brazil (mainly Paraná, Santa Catarina and Rio Grande do Sul) The Hunsrik word kwadi derives from Portuguese quati, which comes from Tupi akwa'tim, meaning "long nose". In Portuguese, the word refers to animals of the genera Nasua and Nasuella, which like to warm themselves for a long time in the sun. Source: Dicionário do hunsriqueano (unpublished) Credit: Adriano Steffler |
UntranslatableExtraordinary words from the world's Indigenous languages. Archives
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